Ontario County announces mobile app to get home safely if you are drunk or high

Ontario County announced Thursday a new, free, mobile app that encourages people to have a plan to get home safely if they are impaired by drugs or alcohol.

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By Julie Sherwood

MPNnow

By Julie Sherwood

Posted Aug. 14, 2014 at 3:23 PM

By Julie Sherwood

Posted Aug. 14, 2014 at 3:23 PM

Ontario County announced Thursday a new, free, mobile app that encourages people to have a plan to get home safely if they are impaired by drugs or alcohol.

The app for available for iPhone, Android, and Windows smartphones targets the 18-34 age range with features such as an ability to preload a list of designated drivers, find a taxi cab via GPS, an alcohol impairment estimator, various motor skills tests to assess impairment level and a ‘Report DWI’ button that connects users to their local 911 service.

The app also offers a list of DWI facts and myths, access to STOP-DWI social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, as well as a RSS feed to get the latest news on impaired driving.

“The ‘Have A Plan’ app will be important in the effort to prevent impaired driving,” stated Sue Cirencione, Ontario County STOP-DWI coordinator. “We want people to enjoy themselves, but we also want them to get home safely.”

“This app helps its users do that by placing a tool in the hands of a potentially impaired driver to find a safe way home.”

Developed by STOP-DWI New York and Staples Marketing under a grant from the New York State Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, “Have A Plan” is one of the most comprehensive traffic safety mobile apps in the country, according to a release.

Users can download the “Have A Plan” app by visiting www.stopdwi.org/mobile app and selecting the link for the Apple Store, Google Play, or the Windows Phone Store.

“I urge drivers to make advance plans to get a sober ride home from a friend, a taxi or by using public transportation. The new “Have A Plan’ app can help guide individuals to make the right choice to get home safely. Don’t put yourself or others in harm’s way by driving while impaired,” stated Cirencione.

STOP-DWI, which stands for ‘Special Traffic Operations Program for Driving While Intoxicated”, was created by the state Legislature in 1981 to empower county governments to coordinate local efforts to reduce alcohol and other drug-related traffic crashes within the context of a comprehensive and financially self-sustaining alcohol and highway safety program.

For more information about Ontario County STOP-DWI or the “Have a Plan” program, contact the STOP-DWI office at (585) 396-4308 or follow the program on Facebook.